Changeless and other Book & Movie Reviews

Changeless, the second book in the Parasol Protectorate series by Gail Carriger, was everything I hoped it would be: very humorous with a twisty mystery and dash of absurdity for good measure. In this story our heroine, Alexia, is trying to figure out why areas of paranormal creatures turn into mortals. I definitely recommend this book, but be forewarned about a big cliffhanger of an ending.

The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag by Alan Bradley was just as wonderful as his first novel The Sweetness at the Bottom of the Pie. Once again, our intrepid little 11 year old heroine, Flavia de Luce, is determined to solve the mystery of a puppeteer's murder. Charming, funny and well written. I definitely recommend both of these books.

Vampire A Go Go by Victor Gischler was a fun romp that I also recommend. Various factions and individuals are all chasing after the philosopher's stone for one reason or another. It's an action packed mystery adventure.

I picked up Dog Days by John Levitt for one of my book challenges, which was to pick a book based solely on its cover. It had a guy and a dog that glowed blue, and at the bottom is said Magic is a Man's Best friend. It was actually a pretty good book so I lucked out. What's not to love about a magic dog?

Date Night was funnier than I thought it would be. The previews definitely don't do it justice. Tina Fey and Steve Carrell are spot on. The funniest part may have been the outtakes when the credits were rolling.

Girl With the Dragon Tattoo was a good movie, which surprised me because the book was slow and tedious and I couldn't make it past chapter 10. It was made in Sweden. If you can stand reading subtitles I definitely recommend this movie.

Deadtown, Heroin Diaries, and other reviews

I just finished Deadtown by Nancy Holzner and I really enjoyed reading it. Set in Massachusetts, it takes place in a current time when a virus had mutated around Boston and caused some unfortunate people in the vicinity to become zombies. They're quarantined in the area now known as Deadtown. Our heroine, Vicky, is a shifter who comes from a long line of demon slayers. She lives in Deadtown with her vampire roommate and dates a werewolf lawyer. It's an action-packed, entertaining urban fantasy novel that I recommend to readers of the genre.

I also read The Heroin Diaries by Nikki Sixx, bass player for Motley Crue. He kept journals during 1987 when he was into some of his heaviest heroin use. It's fascinating/terrifying/heartbreaking to read what he was thinking during that time. He supplements his diary entries with his own reflections, as well as the reflections of others who were around him at that time. I usually don't read these types of books, but I definitely recommend this one to anyone who's even remotely interested. It'll blow you away.

I also made it through Monster in the Box by Ruth Rendell. I read a couple of her other books and absolutely loved them, but not this one. It was tedious to read and boring. The only reason I finished it is because it was only 300 pages long with big print. I just forced myself through it. If you're looking for a good mystery, pick up Thirteen Steps Down or The Water's Lovely instead. Those are well worth your time; this one is not.

I went to see Clash of the Titans yesterday. It was OK but not great. Ralph Fiennes and Liam Neesan are always wonderful to watch, but their screen time is short. Being a sci-fi/action film fan, I'm glad I saw it. If you're planning to watch it DON'T waste your money on the 3D version. Many scenes weren't in 3D. This is one of those movies they never intended to make in 3D but threw a 3D version together anyway.